[Hammarlund] SP-400's

[Barry H]

Hi Ed (& gang)

One thing left out that might be significant for some -- the SP-200's and 400's require an outboard power supply and cabling.  They were originally supplied with a special cables with spreaders (looms?) on the ends to make it easier to match up the wires to the terminal strips. (Not so much "plug 'n play" as screw 'n play, heh heh)   

The combination of the 200/400 and power supply is bulkier and heavier than an SP-600 with its built in supply.  If you're interested in getting a 200 or 400, I would suggest getting it with the power supply otherwise you'll be forever hunting one down or have to resort to some home-brewing.

Offerings, like mileage, will vary.  For example, in recent weeks, one SP-400 sold for $169 without the supply, another for about $113 with it -- but the fuse was said to have burnt out shortly after it was powered up.  Often put up for sale or auction without the supply, it's is often the case that operating condition is unknown.

If you are new to the vintage stuff and would prefer something self-contained of similar style, there are the HQ-120's (pre-war) and HQ-129X's (post-war) which are in some ways more similar to the SP-200/400 than the SP-600's, at least in terms of tuning arrangement.  Or, go with the later HQ's.

As usual, depends what you want.

Barry


Ed wrote:


Well, I started out with a SP-200 many years ago, so I'll take a shot at a  
quick summary.  The SP-200 was roughly a world war II era radio, with the  
SP-400 a very similar variant coming after the war.  In the late '40s or  early 
'50s the SP-600 came along. The 400 was a very good radio for the  time, but has 
some shortcomings when compared to current radios.  It only  has single 
conversion, so images can be a problem on the higher bands, and it  will drift some 
as it warms up.  On the other hand, the sensitivity is very  good, and the 
audio is great.  The main differences in going to  the SP600 are double 
conversion, and the '600 has no bandspread.   The geared-down tuning is nice for band 
scanning, but troublesome for  tuning SSB on the higher bands.  The HQ 180 is 
a newer generation, with  provision for SSB, as well as double conversion and 
bandspread. I would  only get an SP400 for old times sake, compared to a HQ 
180, for example.   90% of my listening in on my R-390A, which is in a different 
league than any of  these Hammarlund receivers.
Ed
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